Emotional intelligence + Brain Science = a help for public speaking

Almost all of my public speaking clients express one common fear – that they will forget their presentation.  This universal terror explains why too many presenters read their wordy powerpoint slides to their audience. 

Emotional Intelligence and brain science can explain what’s happening.   Our nervousness triggers our flight/fight response.  Our amygdala “hijacks” the neocortex, including the language centers of the brain.  Now we can’t remember what we were going to say.

What to do?

Practice!  When we practice we create stronger synaptic pathways in our brain related to our message.  We’ll be more able to access our message since it has a stronger structure in our brain.

Find ways to relax.  We can: 

·       Take a supplement like kava (both relaxes the brain while enhancing focus)

·       Practice deep breathing

·       Use a visualization (our memories of great times in beautiful places can help).  As we relax the amygdala stops firing and we can regain access to our higher thinking brain.

More ideas coming soon.
© 2019 Laura Lewis-Barr all rights reserved